US bid to extradite Venezuela’s ex-intel chief rejected

MADRID: A top Spanish court on Monday said it had denied a US request to extradite Venezuela’s former military intelligence chief on drug trafficking charges, instead ordering his release.

"The Audiencia National has denied the extradition of General Hugo Armando Carvajal," said Spain’s top criminal court, which handles such requests. The judges decided to release Carvajal, who served as head of military intelligence under the late Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez and has been held in provisional detention since his arrest in Madrid in mid-April. Details of the full judgement will not be published until Tuesday, said the court which examined the case last week.